Computing devices are no longer limited to just servers, desktops, and laptops, but are increasingly found in phones, watches, and even eyeglasses. For example, many appliances around the home now incorporate a growing array of computing functions, such as thermostats that can be programmed remotely and refrigerators with touchscreens for looking up and displaying recipes. The ideal smart home is composed of numerous networked smart appliances that can be controlled over a home network and can perform a variety of tasks for enhancing a home's convenience and safety. Every day this ideal is moving closer to becoming a reality, and with this new reality comes new challenges in ensuring that smart appliances are at least as convenient for users as their non-networked predecessors.
While some smart appliances and devices are designed to be connected to a home's wired network, a growing number of smart appliances are designed to connect to wireless networks. Traditional methods for connecting smart appliances to wireless networks typically require a user to manually input the name and/or password of the desired wireless network on the device in question. Unfortunately, this process can be difficult and/or tedious on devices that have user interfaces that were not designed for typing, such as printers, refrigerators, and thermostats. While some traditional systems attempt to avoid this by broadcasting network credentials to smart devices, these systems often lack the security features necessary to prevent rogue devices from acquiring the network's credentials. Accordingly, the instant disclosure identifies and addresses a need for additional and improved systems and methods for conveniently and securely connecting purpose-built appliances, such as smart appliances, to secure wireless networks.